Fluid, handsome and gorgeous to behold, Scheherazade, Tell Me a Story is a polished piece of Egyptian storytelling – polished to an edge. Having helped lead a new wave of serious cinema coming from the Arab world, Yousry Nasrallah now directs his considerable skills toward a sharper and sharper observation of his own society. His new film interlocks three stories of women constrained by long-standing social norms.
Adopting the story-within-a-story framing device of Arabian Nights, Nasrallah recasts the tale's Scheherazade as Hebba Younis (Mona Zakki), a contemporary, fiercely independent talk-show host. Married to Karim Hassan (Hassan El Raddad), a needy and opportunistic newspaper editor for a government-owned daily, Hebba is asked to forfeit the success of her career for the professional ambitions of her husband. In the eyes of government officials, before Karim may ascend his own political and professional ladder, he must persuade his wife to soften the blazingly critical tone she broadcasts across the nation.
Afraid of how yet another divorce may affect her celebrity among the Cairo public, Hebba finally complies, ultimately privileging the success of her marriage over her own personal and professional aims. But by shifting from hard politics to softer “women's stories,” she discovers lives and struggles that may be even more damaging to reveal.
Employing a sophisticated multi-strand narrative, Nasrallah introduces three sisters whose relationship with the labouring-class man who works for them falls first into seduction then into tragedy. Although their story might seem the stuff of tabloid exposés, it connects with Hebba's own life in ways she could never have imagined.
Nasrallah proves himself a master of compelling narrative that carries a strong social critique. Provocative and audacious in its exploration of how men and women shape each other's lives in today's Cairo, Scheherazade, Tell Me a Story marks an important addition to the canon of Egyptian cinema.
Cameron Bailey
Yousry Nasrallah was born in Cairo and studied economics and political science at Cairo University. He later worked as a film critic and assistant director in Beirut. In 1987, he directed his first feature,
Summer Thefts, a film that contributed to the revival of Egyptian cinema. Other works include
Mercedes (93),
On Boys, Girls and the Veil (95),
The City (99),
The Gate of Sun (04),
The Aquarium (08) and
Scheherazade, Tell Me a Story (09).